The Hungry Student: comparing TigerTownToGo to JoyRun
When I was a freshman without a car, I quickly learned what the do’s and don’t’s were when it came to ordering food on a budget in Auburn. Before I knew the proper etiquette for ordering food here, I made the rookie mistake of directly calling a restaurant to make an order. Of course, I was immediately redirected to TigerTownToGo-- the delivery meca for hungry college students who are 1) without a car like I was 2) are ordering for a study session with friends or classmates or 3) just too lazy to leave the house/apartment/dorm to venture off for food.
Although most of the time I was looking for the fastest and cheapest option, TigerTownToGo limited me to only one of the two-- I could get the food that I wanted and in a pretty convenient amount of time, but I had to pay the price. It makes sense that there’s a set amount of money charged that goes to the driver (the fixed delivery rate of $2.99), but there’s also the option of adding a tip. Stack on the price of the food item, the tax, the fixed delivery rate, and the optional tip, and you’re looking to spend roughly $16 to $20 for one person for something that would normally cost $7.99 in store. For me, this made ordering out a rare occasion where I would save it for really desperate times and “treat yoself” kind of days.
Should ordering food in a college town feel like such a luxury, though, when businesses should be marketing more towards student budgets?
This is a question the new delivery option, JoyRun, addresses as it plans to knock out the middlemen of the delivery system set in place by companies like TigerTownToGo-- aka eliminating the hired drivers. How can a delivery company eliminate the actual delivery person? Well, Amir Naveh of JoyRun who manages PR and outreach for JoyRun says that to solve this debacle, “fundamentally every student is a runner and contributes to their community.” Essentially, if you want to order food through JoyRun, you have to download the app and sign in through your Facebook. Once you’ve made an account, you can immediately connect with friends or fellow students, add your school email, and start making delivery requests.
Unlike TigerTownToGo, JoyRun doesn’t have a minimum spending cost of say $7 if you just want one doughnut from University Donut Company. Instead, the person, also known as the runner, will set a custom price for the delivery and give you a time they could deliver it. The dialogue is set up as instant messaging, so it’s easily accessible from your phone. If no one is out delivering what you want, you can put in a request. However, it’s not always guaranteed that someone will be going to the place where you want to order food from, let alone if they’re delivering where you are at the time you want it. So, what’s the difference between JoyRun and just texting a friend for food without having to pay them for delivering it? Well, JoyRun’s plan as they hope to grow in the Auburn community, is to bring people together and “putting power in the hands of the user, and in turn the community,” as Amir mentioned in his response about why you should choose JoyRun.
All-in-all, it’s up to the people of Auburn whether or not they’re willing to try something new and works as a university community to bring one another food-- especially when we’re cramming late night for midterms or finals. Just don’t be a rookie like I was and try to call up all of the restaurants if you don’t want to face constant rejection-- instead, message someone on JoyRun, or head straight to TigerTownToGo’s website.
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